Election 2012: Faces of the Latino Vote by Marco Grob

3 minute read

Nosotros vamos a decidir. That’s the presidential election refrain coming from many American Latinos, a group of voters Michael Scherer explores in TIME’s cover story next week. Nearly 9% of all voters in 2012 will be Latino, up 26% from four years ago, according to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials. That figure will only continue to climb—per the Pew Hispanic Center, one in four children born in the U.S. is Latino, and every month, at least 50,000 Latino citizens turn 18.

TIME contract photographer Marco Grob spent a recent February weekend chronicling Latino voters in Phoenix, Ariz. His portfolio for the magazine is not just comprehensive—it is insightful and deep. The Swiss photographer, who is now based in New York City, previously photographed TIME’s Beyond 9/11: Portraits of Resilience, a multimedia project revealing testimonies of the national tragedy, as well memorable portraits of Lady Gaga and Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton for 2010’s TIME 100 issue.

True to form, Grob captured the essence of each Arizona face with a single camera click. He photographed deacons, dancers and Dreamers; nutrition undergrads, car aficionados and immigration activists; Mexicans, Hondurans and Guatemalans. “There were many unique challenges involved in this shoot,” says Grob, who photographed over 150 people on “three days on four different locations including a university, a local restaurant, an outdoor market and a Catholic church. The terms ‘Latino’ and ‘Latina’ have a vast identity of their own,” he continues, “so for the duration of this project we strove to break some of those stereotypes.”

If one sentiment unites these citizens, it is that they believe that their vote matters. TIME asked each person Grob photographed if he or she would vote in the upcoming election. Over and over again, the answer was a resounding yes. Many described voting as the ultimate civic duty. Others drew their determination from SB1070, a controversial immigration bill promoted by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer in 2010, and cited friends and family who cannot vote as their reason for political participation. Overall, they proclaimed that Latinos, more than ever, need to make their voice heard.

Marco Grob is a contract photographer for TIME. You can see his project Beyond 9/11: Portraits of Resilience here.

Elizabeth Dias is a reporter in TIME’s Washington bureau. Follow her on Twitter @elizabethjdias.

Read more: “Why Latino Voters will Swing The 2012 Presidential Election

Francisco Martinez, age 56. “I believe that every vote makes a difference. If you want a change, then you have to vote.”Marco Grob for TIME
Fabien Rubi, age 20. “I think every vote counts, and we need to get the right person into the office so we don’t make any mistakes”Marco Grob for TIME
Brenda Araiza, age 20. “I think it is really important especially after [Arizona Senate Bill] 1070 and everything that is going on—it is just important to have our voice, especially as Latinos, to have a say in what goes on in society.”Marco Grob for TIME
Mary Zaragoza, age 75. “We have to protect the Democratic Party for the rights of the Latino, our youth and our elderly, and our health care.”Marco Grob for TIME
Celeste Atencio, age 19. “I will [vote] but I haven’t decided on who right yet. Maybe Ron Paul.”Marco Grob for TIME
Deacon Matias Valle, age 62. "In this country you have to be responsible as a citizen, you have to act as a citizen, and that includes voting. You can't just come and take a space, you have to give something in return. You have to act properly in a religious and social aspect to be complete. "Marco Grob for TIME
Norma Torres, age 61. “Oh yes. We need the Latino vote.”Marco Grob for TIME
Luz Osuna, age 23. “There are a lot of issues that are very important, and to me, I feel like if I don’t say something about them because no one else is, then you don’t have the right later to complain afterwards about whichever policy, because you didn’t vote.”Marco Grob for TIME
Carmen Camou, age 25. “Yes, I will vote. I think it is pretty important that they will hear our voice, get a chance to be a part of politics.”Marco Grob for TIME
Raul Urquidi, age 47. “My election favorite is Democrat. Four years is too short for [the] promise they made us, but I trust the guys.”Marco Grob for TIME
Adrian Osuna, age 17. [Osuna will turn 18 in March and intends to register to vote.] “If you don’t vote, your voice is lost. You have to let people know that they are not going to step on you, and you have to be powerful.”Marco Grob for TIME

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